Vivaro Romano Polenta Festival

A winter festival on the edge of Lazio

The Vivaro Romano Polenta Festival is one of the most authentic culinary events in the upper province of Rome. Perched at 757 meters above sea level among the Carseolani Mountains, on the border with Abruzzo, the village is one of the smallest and most remote municipalities in the Metropolitan City of Rome: a cluster of stone houses, narrow alleys, and sweeping views over the Turano Valley. Here, in the period leading up to Christmas—traditionally around the Feast of the Immaculate Conception—the local Pro Loco opens its kitchens and invites everyone to the table to celebrate the onset of winter with the ultimate peasant dish: polenta.

The dish: polenta with pork rib sauce

The recipe follows the Vivaro tradition, passed down through generations. The cornmeal polenta, slow-cooked in large copper cauldrons, is seasoned with a rich pork rib sauce, accompanied by sausages, and finished with sautéed broccoli rabe, a classic winter vegetable in the Lazio region. The festival menu also includes wine and water, following the simple and generous style typical of local village festivals. It is a warming lunch, designed to be enjoyed in good company during the cold days of December.

An indoor lunch, sheltered from the cold

Given the village's altitude and the season, the festival takes place entirely indoors. In recent editions, lunch has been served in the village halls below the main square, with a meeting point in Piazza della Peschiera starting at 1:00 PM. Due to organizational requirements, the Pro Loco recommends booking by phone: seating is limited and turnout, for such a small village, is always significant.

The village and the Castello Borghese

The festival is also the perfect opportunity to discover Vivaro Romano. Before or after lunch, you can freely visit the Castello Borghese, a historic fortified residence that dominates the town, or wander through the alleys of the historic center, which already breathes the pre-Christmas atmosphere during the event. From the village, the view embraces the mountains of the Sabina and Carseolano areas, in one of the most pristine corners of Lazio.

A tradition renewed every year

The Polenta Festival is a permanent fixture on the Vivaro calendar. Local records document regular editions in late autumn and early winter, such as those on December 8, 2023, late 2024, and December 7, 2025. For the municipality of Vivaro Romano and its community, which counts very few residents in winter, the festival represents a strong identity moment: the village repopulates, families return to their roots, and the steaming polenta becomes the perfect excuse to reconnect. A small but significant mountain ritual, just over an hour from Rome.